U.K. study: Kids do better if teachers are not fixated on test results

Pupils show greater motivation, are better behaved and are more likely to be independent and strategic thinkers when teachers are not obsessed by grades, the study by the Institute of Education found. But Brit gov't. policy increasingly mirrors U.S. No Child Left Behind testing madness. .

"Our preoccupation with exam performance could be a key element in explaining the ... underachievement in secondary schools in England," says the study's author, Chris Watkins. "If there is one new thing we need in our school system right now, it is a well-developed focus on learning."(Guardian)